Friday, August 3, 2012

Bicycling and all aspects of it seems to be enjoying a renaissance of sorts including riders, places to ride, and how people enjoy their time on two wheels, not to mention the vast options of brands, builds, accessories and apparel. The bicycle is definitely on the list of things we seem to take for granted since it has had such a presence in our everyday lives. It's hard to imagine a time when it was a fairly new invention and everyone was interested in having one.

Our involvement with Schwinn Bicycles came early in 2012 through a request by the agency Boom Island to shoot lifestyle based stills and motion imagery on location in San Diego, CA. The project encompassed settings in the urban heart of the city, residential areas, country touring and off road trails in the foothills with a variety of talent portraying the range of Schwinn riders and bicycles available to the public. The week of production went by quickly capturing both stills and video of each proposed scenario. Our DP, Alex Horner was brought on to capture motion visuals, doing his best to mirror and augment what was being directed for the still portion of the shoot. Together as a team we covered off on a lot of scenes building a substantial pool of assets to build on the Schwinn library.

The brand and name Schwinn has an interesting backstory. One of the early leaders and standouts of the time, Ignaz Schwinn created a dynasty with his namesake, which remains a popular brand to this day. Ignaz was a German immigrant with a background in mechanical engineering who happened to settle in Chicago before the turn of the century. With additional financial backing from a fellow German immigrant, the Schwinn Bicycle company was founded in 1895 on the cusp of the great bicycle boom in the US. At one point Schwinn was one of 30 factories building bicycles in Chicago trying to capitalize on the growing demand. The opportunity to become an institution was within reach and they made it happen creating a lasting legacy which has endured to this day.

We've been staying busy near and far shooting both still and motion based projects. Last week we were out in San Francisco working on a video project for Target involving their C9 line of active wear. This week we have been dividing our time between domestic animals and their owners for Purina and an agricultural project in the fields of rural Wisconsin in collaboration with Colle + McVoy. Keep an eye out for future posts revolving around these shoots and more.